Four-time IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti on Thursday held his first news conference since he suffered serious injuries in a career-ending crash in October. "Sorry I haven't been in a position to chat any earlier," said Franchitti, 40, who also is a three-time winner of the Indianapolis 500. "Thank you, really, to everybody for all the kind wishes," he said. "It's been so nice to know that I was appreciated. " Franchitti (pronounced Fran-kee-tee), a Scottish driver of Italian descent, was injured Oct. 6 in an IndyCar street race in Houston.

Dario Franchitti underwent surgery to stabilize his broken right ankle after the IndyCar driver went airborne and crashed into the catchfence at a race in Houston, his Target Chip Ganassi Racing team said Monday. Franchitti, 40, also suffered two spinal fractures and a concussion Sunday but was "awake and alert" when he was admitted to Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center, the team said. An IndyCar official and two fans also were taken to a hospital for treatment, IndyCar said.

Four-time IndyCar series champion Dario Franchitti, citing doctors' advice after he was seriously hurt in a crash in October, said Thursday he is ending his racing career. "Based upon the expert advice of the doctors who have treated and assessed my head and spinal injuries post-accident, it is their best medical opinion that I must stop racing," Franchitti said in a statement issued by his team, Target Chip Ganassi Racing. "They have made it very clear that the risks involved in further racing are too great and could be detrimental to my long-term well-being," he said.

Dario Franchitti was disappointed that Saturday's qualifying for the Iowa Corn Indy 250 was canceled. He thought that a few late tweaks made to his No. 10 car had turned it into a "rocket ship." Franchitti settled instead for Sunday's checkered flag -- his second victory in two tries at Iowa Speedway in Newton. Franchitti took the lead with 50 laps to go and cruised to victory.

Dario Franchitti won his second Indianapolis 500 on Sunday after dominating the race and his team owner Chip Ganassi made history, becoming the first owner to win the Indy 500 and NASCAR's Daytona 500 in the same year. Although Franchitti had the strongest car, he had to wait out several drivers who opted not to make a late pit stop with the leaders. Eventually, though, those drivers -- who included defending race winner Helio Castroneves -- were forced to pit for fuel and Franchitti regained the lead for good.

Winless after three races this season, reigning IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti figures Long Beach is the perfect spot to end that streak. And why not? Franchitti won the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach a year ago on his way to claiming his second Izod IndyCar Series title, and he hopes to defend his victory Sunday in the 36th running of the race on the city's seaside streets. "I'd like to have a couple of wins on the board already by now," the 36-year-old Franchitti said Thursday, "but we're definitely capable of doing it" at Long Beach.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Dario Franchitti won his third Indianapolis 500 on Sunday in a thrilling finish to a race that saw a record number of more than 30 lead changes. As the white flag waved for the last lap in the 200-lap race, Japanese driver Takuma Sato tried to pass Franchitti for the lead on the inside of Turn 1 of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But Sato then lost control, spun and smacked the wall. That brought out the caution period and Franchitti had his third Brickyard victory on a scorching hot day with temperatures in the low 90s. He also won the famed race in 2007 and 2010.

INDIANAPOLIS -- It would be convenient and sentimental to say that Dario Franchitti's third Indianapolis 500 win was a fitting result, seeing as it came with the race celebrating the late driver Dan Wheldon, who was one of Franchitti's best friends. But appropriate or not, the outcome was in doubt until the final lap Sunday, when Franchitti prevailed only after a thrilling spree of lead changes among several drivers, the likes of which the legendary race hadn't seen for more than half a century.

Dario Franchitti is back with a vengeance. The veteran driver has made a triumphant return to the IndyCar Series after his ill-fated venture into NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car racing which, at this time last year, already had ended prematurely. In this year's IndyCar championship battle Franchitti is only 20 points behind leader Scott Dixon, the reigning titleholder and Franchitti's teammate at Target Chip Ganassi Racing, as the series arrives for Sunday's Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma at curvy Infineon Raceway here.

Four-time IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti fractured two vertebrae, broke his right ankle and sustained a concussion when his car went airborne into a catch fence during the final lap of the Grand Prix of Houston on Sunday, with flying debris injuring 13 spectators and a series official. Franchitti was transported to a hospital where the three-time Indianapolis 500 winner would be held overnight, and a series official was treated for minor injuries. Houston Fire Department spokesman Ruy Lozano said 11 of the 13 injured fans were treated on site at Reliant Park.